Micromove #3

This is the third and final part of this Micromove series. Like the previous two, this an advanced topic. If you have bigger problems in your swing, don't worry about this yet. This movement in particular is to be used as an addition to an already solid swing.

In my Drill #2, I use a four part progression for hitters to work on their stride. By the time have mastered the third progression, they have a good stride. But we can take it just a little farther with the fourth progression, a movement I call the breakaway. Below is a slideshow of some MLB hitters. The first photo is of them at the moment they are starting to move the body forward. The second photo is somewhere before the front foot hits the ground. Study the photos and we will make some observations.

Ok. Let's look at a few things. First, the hitters are moving their ENTIRE body with the stride. There is no tipping, leaving the head behind, staying back, any number of flaws you hear about. Their heads are over their belt buckles during the stride and into foot-plant. This so important. Second, we see them doing the Creating Space Part I movement (except for Reddick, which we have already explored). But there is one more thing we can look at and that is Micromove #3.

On the photos, I have drawn a line through the back ankle through the back knee. I have also drawn a line at the back hip. Notice how in the second photo, the hitters have moved away from the hip line, but the angle of the back leg at the knee is unchanged. They have separated from the hip line, but not changed the line through the knee.

This movement is a little different than you might be used to thinking about. Imagine guarding someone is basketball. As you move side to side, you maintain balance, that is both knees have the same angle. The baseball swing is different in that we only have to move one way, so we don't have to have "balance." In fact, we don't want to. Let's take a look at Josh Reddick when his front footing is coming down.

Notice how his rear knee is more toward the catcher than a balanced stride would result. This is tremendously important because it gives his legs a larger range-of-motion to generate power. Without this, Reddick would not be able to hit with near as much power.

So what are the hitters doing? The hitters are getting an inward turn of the lower body as they stride out. I say lower body, because it is a lower body movement only. The upper body resists this rotation, creating stretch from the upper and lower portions of the body.

How are they doing this? Take a look at Reddick's back foot. Where is the pressure? Outside or inside? Micromove #3 is performed by driving off the rear leg while also internally loading the front leg. This provides the stretch, and saves that rear leg range-of-motion for the bat swing.

Just as important of the what and how is the when. There is a popular teaching belief in hitting to get the front foot down early, then load the lower body with the front foot on the ground. The movement results in a BIG inward turn of the front leg. There are a couple problems with this. One, it is not what elite hitters are doing. The inward load is the very first part of the stride, then they keep that coil into toe-touch. Second, coiling the front leg that late simply doesn't allow enough time to get the leg unloaded, especially against fast pitching. Instead of creating a bigger, better leg drive, the legs don't have enough time to work and create a rotational block by being out of position. Third, it provides no mechanism for adjusting to off-speed pitches. These reasons are why you don't see MLB hitters perform the front-foot-down-early swing. (A perfect example of this is Bryce Harper. Harper did the foot-early stride through high school, but changed to a proper stride before making it to the Show.)

This is why the breakaway is the fourth and final progression of my stride drills. After getting the stride down, it is fairly easy to add this movement.